Greg Becker, the former CEO of Silicon Valley Bank, has come under fire for his role in the bank’s failure, but he is defiant in his refusal to return any of the $10 million he received from the defunct lender. Becker attempted to deflect attention away from management failure during his Tuesday testimony before the Senate Banking Committee by attributing the bank’s collapse in March to unusual circumstances, interest rate increases, and unfavourable social media coverage. He repeatedly declined to promise any financial restitution, even though he indicated a willingness to work with regulators on reviewing compensation.

Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, questioned Becker, who replied, “I promise to cooperate with the regulators as they do a review,” but made no promise to return any of his sizable earnings. Republicans and Democrats have voiced criticism over Becker’s decision to sell $3.6 million worth of company stock through a trading plan just before the bank disclosed sizable losses.

Becker defended the validity of the stock sales at the hearing on Tuesday, pointing out that the bank’s legal counsel had given them the go-ahead. Additionally, he defended his own pay, saying that the bonuses some employees received for their performance in 2022 prior to the bank’s seizure were legitimate and not accelerated. While being questioned, Scott Shay, the former chairman of Signature Bank, opted not to commit to returning any of his pay.

The bank failures cost the government’s deposit insurance fund billions of dollars, forcing it to be replenished by other financial institutions, lawmakers emphasised. In reference to the federal government’s food assistance programme, Pennsylvania Democrat John Fetterman said, “The Republicans want to give a work requirement for SNAP for a hungry family.” He questioned the need for a working requirement after the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) sold SVB, saying, “Shouldn’t you have one after we sell your bank?”